Lancaster Singers are proud to present a concert of music inspired by the East; Japanese music, both traditional and modern, and excerpts from the Mikado. Marco Fanti, our dynamic Italian Director, and Mavis Fletcher, Associate Director and experienced Choral Director in her own right, feature the choir in Furusato-Songs of the Japanese Homeland-with arrangements by Bob Chilcott (of Kings Singers fame) and Rikuya Terashima, the latter being the U.K. première.

Ian Tate provides solo piano pieces by Toru Takemitsu and Tan Dun. The first half of the concert includes the rousing Three Hungarian Folk songs by Matyas Seiber which are great fun. The concert ends with well known excerpts from Gilbert and Sullivan's Mikado.

Mavis Fletcher writes 'it has been an exciting challenge to prepare and learn to sing in Japanese these Terashima settings of lovely Japanese songs. The composer has given us great help and is very excited about their first performance in the UK.'

Tickets £10, including strawberries and cream and lemonade pressé, may be obtained from the Ashton Memorial (01524 33318), online at www.lancastersingers.org, by phone 01524 68481 or on the door (though space in the Memorial is limited so pre-booking is advisable.